Filling-replenishing mechanism for automatic looms.



No. 843,169. l PATENTE-D IIB. 5, 1907.

I. NoRTHRoP a; W.,I. KOPER. FILLING REILBNISHING MBGHANISM PoR AUTOMATIC Looms.

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No. 843,169. PATENTED FEB. 5, 1907. J. NORTHROP & W. I. ROPER.

FILLING RBPLENISHING MEGHANISM FOR AUTOMATIC LOOMS.

APPLICATION FILED JAN.26,1906.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

lilNliTlilD STATES PATENT OFFTOF.

JONAS NORTHROF AND WALTER F. RO

Pla?, OF HOPEDALE, MASSACHUSETTS,

CORPORATION OF MAINE.

FlLLlNGi-REPLENSlWllNG WllCl-{ANlSWl FOR AUTOMATIC LOONIS.

Specicaton of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 5, 1907.

Application tiled January 26, 1906. Serial No. 298,004.

Be it known that we, Jonas Non'rnnoP i, cred adjacent the selvage.

and VALTER F. Boren, citizens oilthc United States, and residents of llopffdalo, county ol lVorcester, State ol" -.assachusetts, have invented an Improvement in Filling-Koplanishing h'lechanism -for .fiutomatic VLooms, ol' which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a 1o specification, like letters on the drawings represeiiting like parts.

This invention relates te automatic looms, wherein the running lilling is replenished from time to time when necessary, and more particularly to the replenishing mechanism of such looms.

In the Northrop type ol loom, an illustration of which is found in United S yaies Patent No. 529,940, a reserve ol" 'l'llin supplies 2o in the form of a series of l'illing carriers or bobbins is sustained in an intermittinglymovable feeder, hopper, or magazine, from which feeder a vfresh 'lillinggsupply is removed to the running shuttle at each roplenishiug 2 5 operation. The end of lillir-.g i'rom the newlyinserted supply must be held as the shuttle makes its 'first shot across the lay from the replenishing side of the loom in order that the automatic threading ol the shuttle Amay 3o be ellected, such 'filling end being thereafter severed by suitable means adjacent the sclvage or' the cloth.

Heretofore the several 'filling ends have been led outward 'l'rointluy 'iip ends of the 'lilling-carriers in the 'feeder anl over the periphery of a disk attached to th outer end o'l" and movable in unison wilh the feeder, the extremities ol" such iilling ends being suitably hold fast. Then a idling-carrier' is 4o transferred to the shuttle, its illling end extends to this 'fastening device, the latter and the disk being technicz ly termed a 'iillingend holder/7 and it will be marxiiest that the length of 'lilling between the holder and the cloth is considerable. Such length is sul stantially equal to the distan( l from the selvage to the periphery o'l the `k, plus the length of filling from the periphery to the fastening device, and as in practico the disk 5o is somo distance 'from thev outer rnd oi' the `feeder (to give the requisite slackness upon transfer) it will be manifest that this entire length ol filling end becomes waste when sev- This is not so objectionable as to be of great importance when using cheap lilling, but with high-grade and expensive woolin or other yarns it is an item ai' considerable moment, and the waste lrom such a source must be reckoned with.

Our present invention has 4for its obj cct the production oi' means whereby this waste is very materially reduced in practice by more than oneehall", the length of 'Iilling end severed at the selvage of the cloth being less than the distance from the edge o'l the cloth to the inner or adjacent end of the feeder. By thus minimizing the waste due to `lilling ends automatic lilling replenishing mechanisin can be operated with great economy when using the most expensive filling.

The various novel features of our invention will bo l'ully described in the subjoined specification, and particularly pointed out in the 'following claims.

Figur-e l is a front elevation and partial section o'l the 'lilliug-replenishing mechanism ol'v a Northrop loom with one embodiment of our present invention applied thereto, the position o'l' a 'filling-carrier at the instant it is inserted in the running shuttle being shown in dotted lines. Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the topmost tilling-carrier in the -feeder to show the load of the 'Iilling end and the bight or loop 'l'ormed therein adjacent the tip et' the carrier. Fig. 3 is an inner side elevation ot the Alilling-end holder, a part of the stand 'ior the lilling-tceder being shown, and the device lor parting the 'filing end adjacent the selvage. Fig. et is an enlarged. 'face view of one ol thc tip-holders, showing the device for sustaining the loop or bight in the 'filling end, and Fig` is a sectional detail on theline 5 5, Fig` 3.

le'lerring to Fig. l, the end plate a of the idling-tecder, having peripheral pockets 2 to receive the heads ol" the filling-carriers l), the stand A7, mounted on the breast-beam A40 and having a circular llange c overhanging the periphery el`- plate a, the hub c3 of the latter secured to the hub a`3 of the plate a', so that the two plates will rotate in unison, the transterrerf, m ounied to rock on the stud and the tip-depressing arm 2l may be and are all substantially as in Northrop looms,

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such as before referred to. ln our present invention, however, the horizontal stud c, rigidly secured to the stand A7 by a nut 3, is made hollow or sleeve-like, as shown in Fig. l, to receive rotatably within it a long shaft or spindle 4, headed at its outer end at 5 to snugly enter the extremity of the hub a3, to which it is secured by a pin 6. The connected hubs a3 c2 rotate on the stud a6 as the feeder is advanced step by step in well-known manner, and the spindle 4 rotates in unison with the feeder, the inner end of said spindle projecting beyond the nut 3 for a purpose to be described. The plate a/ of the feeder is provided with a series of tip-holders hX, having lateral lugs or ears lz., Fig. 4, to engage the outer face of the plate, the latter having an annular rib or flange a to receive the transverse grooves h at the inner ends of the holders, the latter rocking on said flange as a fulcruin and being pressed inward by springs 81X, Fig. l, all substantially as in United States patent to Stimpson, No. 755,252, dated March 22, 1904. A socket h4 in the face of each holder receives the tip of the lling-carrier l), the spring sX then acting by endwise pressure on the lling-carrier to retain it in the feeder until transferred, as in the patent.

just referred to.

Referring to Fig. 4, it will be seen that one of the lugs t of the tip-holder is provided with a projection 71,7 on the end of the lug, laterally offset from the body of the holder and slightly undercut on its outer face, as at hs. As the direction of rotation of the feeder is in the direction of arrow 100, Fig. 3, the projection h7 will be on the follow side of each tip-holder as it is advanced by movement of the feeder, this being also evident from an inspection of Fig. 2.

When a filling-carrier is placed in the feeder, the spring of the tip-holder is compressed, swinging the holder outward, as in Fig. l, and the filling end t is led over the end of the holder and around the projection L7, forming a bight or loop t', and thence the end is led at t2 to the end-holding means located adjacent the inner end of the feeder and now to be described.

A circular plate or disk 7, Figs. l and 3, is provided with a central hub 8, fixedly secured by one or more set-screws 9 to the projecting inner end of the spindle 4, as shown clearly in Fig. 1, the said disk being thus attached coaxially to the feeder adjacent its inner end, the disk abutting against the face of the nut 3. The periphery of the disk is notched at l0, one notch for each of the filling-oarrier-sustaining means on the feeder, the filling end at t2 being led from the projection 717 into the next notch 10 following the particular filling-carrier, (the notches being set behind the pockets 2 in the plate (1,) so as to clear the body of filling on the carrier, as shown in Fig. 2. On the inner face of the disk (that one nearer the center of the loom) we have mounted a series of end-holding devices, herein shown as substantially l..- sliaped members l] 12, inade of spring metal, the longer arm ll of each being radially disposed on the disk and secured thereto by a screw-bolt 13 at its inner end.

Referring to Figs. l, 3, and 5, it will be seen that the disk is provided with a circular recess 14, across which the arms ll extend, the short arm 12 of each holding member being substantially V-shaped in cross-section so that the apex edge normally rests on the surface of the disk outside the recess, and the arms 1l are also slightly bowed, as shown in Figs. l and 5, across the recess.

The free ends of the arms 12 are bent so that their tips are turned out from the surface of the disk in order that the operative can readily insert the extremity of each lilling end under an arm, as shown in Fig. 3, after the end has been carried over the edge of the disk in one of the notches 10.

As will be seen from an inspection of Fig. 3, each filling end is drawn against the shouldered or square side of the notch l() and over to the holding device or spring-clip substantially opposite the following notch, giving a firm grip or hold on the extremity of the filling end. The apex edge l2 of the arm l2 impinges upon the filling end and presses it firmly against the disk, so that while the grip is secure so long as the clip is in normal position it will readily free the filling end when moved into abnormal position.

From the foregoing it will be manifest that the filling ends from the circularly-arranged series of filling-carriers in the feeder are held by the end-holding means or at near the inner end of the feeder and between the latter and the edge of the cloth, the stand A7 being interposed between the feeder and the endholding means. Also it will be clear that a bight, as t, is formed in each. filling end near the tip of its filling-carrier, the projections k7 sustaining the bights, and by slightly undercutting or beveling the projections at hs a slight slackness in a illing end will not cause the bight to drop off the projection as it reacli es the lower portion of its circular path of movement.

TWhen the transferrer operates to transfer the leading and lowermost filling-carrier of the series to the running shuttle,- the particular tip-holder instantly moves inward, when the tip of the filling-carrier releases it, and this slight movement of the tip-holder is sufficient to cause the projection k7 to shed the bight t in the filling end.

ln Fig. 1 the dotted-line filling-carrier bx is in position in the shuttle, and we have shown the bight t as freed from its holding projection, it being remembered that the extremity of the lling end is clamped to the disk 7, as explained. The shuttle is now picked to the IOO llO

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left, viewing Fig. 1, and passes through the shed, the slack provided by the bight t and part t2 of the filling end preventing any sudden breaking strain on the filling wlen the shuttle is picked, and the filling end stretches from the disk 7 to the nearer edge of the cloth as the shuttle lays the 'filling in the sled. As is usual in looms of the type herein illustrated, this filling end is severed by a temple thread-cutter close to the selvage after the newly-laid piek is beaten in, and a threadparting device for the outgoing filling is indicated at C, Fig. 3, but forming no part of our present invention.

l/Vhen the temple thread-eutterh as severed the filling end, the piece of thread or yarn between the cutter and the filling-end holder hangs from the clip, as at tx, Fig. 3, and to get rid of these pieces of filling we mount a segmental plate l5 on an arm 16, Fig. 3, rigidly attaclied to the stud The plate 15 'lits easily in the recess 141 of tire disk 7 (see Figs. 3 and 5) and is provided with a raised cam-rib 17, rounded off at its ends, as *h own in Fig. 3, and so located that as oneafter another of the clips reach the cam-rib their arms 11 will ride up thereon, lifting the short arms 12 clear of the disk 7, (see Fig. 5,) and thereby releasing the hanging ends ix of filling, tlie latter dropping to the floor` By making the impinging portion of each arm 12 as a substantial V edge, as at 12X, the release of the piece of 'filling is facilitated, as tliere is so small a portion of the clip in engagement therewith. The clearing away of these pieces of filling is further facilitated by making the cam-rib 17 long enough to hold up several of the clips, so that the vibration of the loom will act for some time upon every clip held in released position. As the feeder advances the clips slide off the cam-rib and resume their normal operative position with relation to the disk 7.

It will be seen that the length of tlie filling end which is cut 0H' at the cloth selvage is very much reduced by our invention, it being just long enough to reach from tle cloth to the clip on the disk 7, wlereas leretofore tlie length l as been more than doubled, owing to tle location of tle end-ltolding means at the outer end of tle filling-feeder. Such a great reduction in tlese waste pieces of filling means a corresponding reduction in tl`e percentage of waste, a matter of importance Wh en using expensive filling.

The particular structure of tite filling-A feeder is not material so far as concerns our present invention, for any suitable form of rotatable feeder may be employed. Se far as we are aware, however, it is broadly new to hold the 'filling ends at or near tl'e inner end of a rotatable feeder in a filling-replenishing loom between tle feeder and tl'e cloth, and accordingly our invention is not restricted to the precise construction and arrangement herein shown, as the same may be varied or rearranged in various particulars by those skilled in tle art wit'out departing from the spirit and scope of our invention.

lflaving fully described our invention, what we claim as new, and desire to secure b v Letters Patent, isA

1. The eombinat ion, in a loom, of an intermittingly-rotatable feeder to sustain the heads and tips of a series of filling-carriers as a reserve supply, a transferrer to transfer the filling-carriers singly to the running shuttle, and means rotatable with and at the inner end of the feeder to hold the 'filling ends leading from said 'titling-rarriers.

2. A 'filling-feeder comprising a. plate to sustain the heads of a cir: ularij` arranged series of filling-carrie a connected plate, yielding tip-holders thereon to sustain the tips of the iiding-carriers, each tip-holder having a projection thereon, and a filling-end holder located :nijaeent the inner end of the feeder' and connected therewith, the several ends of filling passing from their respeetive 'filling-carriers around the projections on the tip-holders and thence baek to the `filling-end holder.

I5. A Afilling-feeder comprising two connected and rotatably-mounte:l plates adapted to sustain respertively the Vheads and tips of a series of `lilling-carriers, means adjacent to and connected with the heini-sustaining plate to hold the filling ends, and means on the tipsustaining plate to support a bight in each 'filling end while the corresponding fillingcarrier is in the feeder.

1. A filling-feeder comprising two connected and rotatably-mounted plates adapted to sustain respectively the heads and tips of a. series of 'filling-carriers, means adjacent to and connect ed with the head-sustaining plate to hold the lill ing ends, and yieldingly-mounted means on the tip-sustaining plate to temporarilv support a bight or loop in each -lilling end until the corresponding carrier is removed from the feeder.

5. The minbination, in a loom, of an intermittingly rotatable feeder to sustain the heads and tips of a series of `iilliiig-earriers as a reserve supply, a transferrer to transfer the 'filling-carriers singly to the running shuttle, a 'tiilinf.g;-end holder at the inner end of and rotatable in unison with the feeder, and means on the outer end of the latter to support a bight of each filling end adjaeent the tip of the wrresponding -liili1ig-earrier.

6. rThe combination, in a loom, of a rotatable 'filling-feeder to sustain the heads and tips of a series of 'tilling-carriers, a disk rotatable with and adjarent the head-sustaining end of the feeder, devi/fes thereon to hold the extremities of the 'filling ends leading from the several filling-carriers, and means on the other end of the feeder to support a bight or loop in each 'filling end.

7. The combination, in a loom7 of intermittingly-movable means adapted to sustain a series of filling-carriers and present them singly into position to be transferred to the running shuttle, a transferrer, al filling-end holder movable with said sustaining means and adjacent the heads of the filling-carriers, and means to automatically release the severed filling ends from the holder.

S. The combination, in a loom, of intermittingly-movable means adapted to sustain a series of filling-carriers and present them singly into position to be transferred to the running shuttle, a transferrer, a filling-end holder movable with and at the inner end of said sustaining means, and automatic means to cause the holder to release the filling ends at a predetermined point in its movement.

9. The combination, in a loom, of a rotatable feeder, adapted to contain a plurality of filling-supplies, means to transfer the supplies singly to the running shuttle, and filling-end-holding means located adjacent the inner end of the feeder.

10. The combination, in a loom, of a filling-feeder at one side thereof to sustain a circularly arranged series of filling carriers, means to transfer them one by one to the running shuttle, and means intermediate the feeder and the cloth to hold the filling ends of the filling-carriers.

11. The combination, in a loom, of a rotatable feeder to sustain the heads and tips of a series of filling-carriers, a transferrer to remove the latter singly to the running shutvtle, means to form'a loop in each filling end adjacent the tip of its filling-carrier, to provide requisite slackness when transferred and to direct the filling end, and a filling-end holder adjacent the head-supporting end of the feeder.

l2. In a loom, a xed stand, a fillingfeeder rotatably mounted thereon at its'outer side and comprising connected plates to respectively sustain the heads and tips of a series of filling-carriers, a peripherally-notched disk at the opposite side of the stand, coaXially connected with the feeder, end-holding clips on the disk, to engage and hold the filling ends, and means on the feeder to temporarily support an outwardly -eXtended loop in each filling end, the filling ends leading from the filling carriers around said means and back over the notched disk to the cli s.

i133. The combination, in a loom, of two connected plates to sustain the heads and tips of a series of filling-carriers, a Xed support on which said plates are rotatably mounted, a peripherally-notched guide-disk coaXially connected with said plates, individual holding devices on said disk to engage and hold the filling ends, means on the tipsustaining plate to form a bight or loop in each lling end, and means to temporarily render inoperative each holding device after the corresponding filling-carrier has been removed to the running shuttle.

14. The combination, in a loom, of a rotatable feeder to sustain a series of filling-carriers, a stand on which the feeder is mounted, a transferrer to remove the filling-carriers singly from the feeder to the running shuttle, a filling-end holder connected with the feeder adjacent its inner end and located between the stand and the cloth, and means to cause the filling ends one after another to be released from the holder after their respective filling-carriers have been transferred.

l5. In a loom, means to automatically replenish the running filling, including a rotatable feeder for reserve supplies of filling, and a filling-end holder between said feeder and the cloth.

16. ln a loom, means to automatically re-` plenish the running filling, including a rotatable feeder for reserve supplies of filling, a filling-end holder connected with the feeder adjacent its inner end, and means to form a loop in each filling end at the outer end of the feeder.

17. A filling-feeder comprising a plate adapted to sustain the heads of a series of filling-carriers, a connected plate, a corresponding series of spring-controlled tip-holders mounted thereon and each provided with a lug, combined with a filling-end holder connected with the inner end of the feeder and comprising a peripherally-notched disk and a series of holding devices thereon, the filling ends being led around the lugs and inward over the edge of the disk to the holding devices.

18. A filling-feeder comprising two connected, rotatably-mounted plates adapted to sustain the heads and tips of a series of fillingcarriers, combined with a fillingend holder comprising a disk coaXially connected with the feeder, end-holding devices thereon, and means to automatically render said devices inoperative one after another, to release the filling ends after removal of the carriers from the feeder.

19. A filling-feeder comprising two connected, rotatably-mounted plates adapted to sustain the heads and tips of a series of fillingcarriers, combined with a filling-end holder comprising a disk coaXially connected with the feeder, spring-clips thereon to hold fast the filling ends, and a fixed cam to act upon one after another of the clips, and cause each to release its filling end after the corresponding filling-carrier has been removed from the feeder.

20. The combination, in a loom, of a rotatable filling-feeder to sustain a series of filling-carriers, a transferrer to remove the latter one by one to the running shuttle, a fillingend holder coaxially connected with the feeder at its inner end, comprising a peripherally- IOO IIO

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notched guide-disk and holding devices on the inner f aces thereof to secure the extremities of the filling ends, and means to support an outwardly-extended loop oi bight in each filling end near the tip of the filling-carrier from which it leads.

21. The combination7 in a loom, of a feeder to removably sustain a circularly-arranged series of @ling-carriers, filling-end-holding means located between the filling-carriers and the cloth, and means to provide slack in each vfilling` end when its carrier is removed from the feeder.

22. The combination, in a loom, of a rotatable feeder to removablr sustain a series of filling-carriers7 a transferrer to remove the latter and insert the same in the running shuttle, filling-enddioldingI means rotatable with the feeder and located at the inner end thereof, and means to slacken each filling end as its carrier is transferred.

.ln testimony whereof we have signed our names to this specification in the presence of two subscribing` Witnesses.

JONAS NOR THR OP. TA'IJTER F. l OPER.

lVitnesses:

GEORGE Oris DRAPER, v ERNEST W. Woon. 

